On its last permitted day for sharing space with Occupy D.C., the National Center's "Occupy Occupy D.C." street team will conduct a jellybean poll of the people who inhabit, use and stroll by Washington D.C.'s Freedom Plaza.

The vote will be conducted on Tuesday, March 15 in Freedom Plaza (13th and Pennsylvania Avenue NW). Anyone in the plaza is allowed to participate (government-issued photo ID is not necessary).

"We've provided a free-market counter-balance to Occupy D.C. for 22 days, and it's time to see how we did," said David Almasi, executive director of the National Center for Public Policy Research and director of the National Center's "Occupy Occupy D.C." project. "There are certainly issues on which we will continue to disagree, such as the size and duties of government. But we've found issues on which the folks at Occupy D.C. found they could agree with us, such as how crony capitalism and bailouts are bad. We've even found some agreement among the occupiers regarding overregulation. I think that we can also agree -- both Occupy D.C. and the American people as whole -- that our nation's biggest problem is really politicians and not any one class of people. That's what our vote on Thursday is all about."

Those participating in the poll, open to all passersby, will be asked to put a jellybean in one of three containers signifying who they think is the source of America's continued problems. The choices will be "The 1%," "The 99%" and "Politicians."

The National Center has obtained a five-week permit for Freedom Plaza in order to share the plaza with left-wing "Occupy D.C." protesters. Since February 13, it has sponsored noontime events every weekday.

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After so many taxpayer dollars were redistributed to businesses favored by the Obama Administration -- businesses that later went bankrupt or failed to live up to expectations -- members of the National Center for Public Policy Research's "Occupy Occupy D.C." street team will set up a graveyard to memorialize the squandered money used to further the crony capitalist agenda of the Obama administration.

Graveside visitation has been scheduled for noon Wednesday, March 14 in Washington D.C.'s Freedom Plaza (13th and Pennsylvania Avenue NW).

"Solyndra. Ener1. Fisker. We knew them well. They happily took our money, and now it's gone. We will never see it again. Now is the time for mourning," said David Almasi, executive director of the National Center for Public Policy Research and director of the National Center's "Occupy Occupy D.C." project. "Obama seems to think all it takes to succeed in America is money, and he decided to take ours to chase his green energy dreams. He obviously didn't realize the free market does not abide crony capitalism. This is the graveyard of Obama's broken stimulus dreams. This memorial will hopefully give the taxpayers closure, letting them come to terms with the billions spent in their names to try to further the Obama political agenda."

The National Center's crony capitalist graveyard will cite at least 20 examples of companies that were given taxpayer dollars that either declared bankruptcy or suffered layoffs or similar other crippling circumstances. Each instance will be marked with a headstone and the amount of money lost.

"Wind, solar and geothermal companies may play a vital part in America's energy future, but only by competing in the free market," added the National Center General Counsel Justin Danhof. "But green energy subsidies are bothersome because they are akin to borrowing from Peter to pay Paul. But it's the direct taxpayer investment to prop up Obama's green energy cronies, the failures of which are memorialized in this graveyard, that is the real tragedy here. Despite the unnecessary risks and the poor results, Obama has taken no responsibility and has left taxpayers flailing in the wind."

The National Center has obtained a five-week permit for Freedom Plaza in order to share the plaza with left-wing "Occupy D.C." protesters. Since February 13, it has sponsored noontime events every weekday.

And America has access to it. The trouble is that this is not part of President Obama's green energy agenda. Obama fully understands that his war on fossil fuels is making energy prices "skyrocket," and Americans are feeling the pain on purpose due to his policies.

When Obama took office, gas prices were around $1.80 per gallon for regular unleaded. This week, the national average soared to more than $3.80 per gallon.

With the White House just a few blocks away, the National Center's "Occupy Occupy D.C." street team will ask Pennsylvania Avenue motorists on Tuesday to speak with their horns in favor of tapping more domestic fossil fuel resources and greenlighting the complete construction of the Keystone XL pipeline.

Come on by to Freedom Plaza, near the corner of 13th and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. Honk for cheaper gas... if you can afford to make the trip.

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"If I was a bird, I'd be an angry bird right now," said David Almasi, executive director of the National Center for Public Policy Research and director of the National Center's "Occupy Occupy DC" project. "Countless innocent birds that only want to be with their eggs die every year from crashing into wind turbines. The environmentalists who promote wind energy at the expense of the birds are green pigs!"

Monday's event is part of The National Center for Public Policy Research's "Occupy Occupy D.C." events at Freedom Plaza. The National Center obtained a five-week permit from the U.S. Park Service that forces the Occupy D.C. encampment to share the park between February 12 and March 15.

A report by the National Research Council estimated that wind turbines kill approximately 100,000 birds every year. The American Bird Conservancy claims the number could be triple that estimate -- affecting the songbird community most of all.

"At some point the slaughter of birds and bats by taxpayer-subsidized wind turbines is going to trigger serious legal action," added National Center Senior Fellow Bonner Cohen, Ph.D. "If the full force of the Migratory Bird Treaty and the Endangered Species Act were brought to bear on these unsightly killing machines, investors would turn their backs on this artificial industry in a heartbeat."

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]]>http://www.occupyoccupydc.org/blog/rss-comments-entry-15393800.xmlScenes from Occupy Occupy DC's "Stop Spending Us!" Street Theater Mocking Supporters of Big Government SpendingThe National Center for Public Policy ResearchSun, 11 Mar 2012 03:50:04 +0000http://www.occupyoccupydc.org/blog/2012/3/11/scenes-from-occupy-occupy-dcs-stop-spending-us-street-theate.html1276709:14972714:15383267Highlights and scenes from the "Occupy Occupy D.C." "Stop Spending Us!" street theater rally mocking big government spending held at Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C., March 2, 2012. Participants are members of the Street Theater Team of the National Center for Public Policy Research.

Note: Members of the original Occupy DC dropped by for one scene, and the signs they are holding in the background do not represent the opinions of the Street Theater Team or the National Center for Public Policy Research.

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Nothing unites conservatives more these days than opposition to and a desire for the repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare).

ObamaCare will effectively take over what most people agree is the best health care system in the world. It risks making it as effective as the DMV.

There are other rallies scheduled for later this year, closer to when the U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in the state attorneys general cases against Obamacare. "Occupy Occupy D.C." activists will help lay the groundwork on Friday, promoting the plea for sanity with another National Center for Public Policy Research program — the Health Care Reform Task Force.

One issue of great concern to the supporters of the National Center's American Criminal Justice Center program is the credibility of the U.S. Department of Justice under Attorney General Eric Holder.

Concerns stem from the potential political motivations regarding the 2008 New Black Panther Party's alleged voter intimidation, possible biased civil rights enforcement and - most of all - the reported lies and cover-ups in the Operation Fast and Furious gun-walking scandal.

Darrell Issa, the chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, authorized a subpoena over four months ago that ordered the Justice Department to produce records related to Operation Fast and Furious. Thus far, only a trickle of documents has been released - and those usually come only on the day before a Capitol Hill hearing on the topic.

Of the 22 categories of interest to congressional investigators, they've received no information for 14 of those categories!

It's time for Holder to answer the subpoena and release the records.

Members of the National Center's "Occupy Occupy D.C." street team will be at Freedom Plaza (13th and Pennsylvania Avenue NW) in the early afternoon on Thursday on behalf of the ACJC to demand that Eric Holder respond to Congress.

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A hazardous materials team in full protective clean-up gear will demonstrate the proper procedure for disposing of a broken compact fluorescent light bulb (CFL) at Washington, D.C.'s Freedom Plaza (13th and Pennsylvania Avenue NW) at noon on Wednesday, March 7.

This demonstration of the inherent dangers facing Americans due to a government-imposed ban on traditional and reliable incandescent light bulbs is part of The National Center for Public Policy Research's "Occupy Occupy D.C." events at Freedom Plaza. The National Center obtained a five-week permit from the U.S. Park Service that forces the Occupy D.C. encampment to share the plaza between February 12 and March 15.

"When it adopted the de facto light bulb ban in 2007, Congress essentially mandated that Americans replace a safe, inexpensive consumer product with one that is more expensive and more dangerous," said Amy Ridenour, chairman of the National Center for Public Policy Research. "The public was told the expense and danger would help us fight alleged man-made global warming, but that was a lie. Not only is the planet not warming as some alarmists predicted, but the people behind the bulb ban were GE, Phillips and Osram Sylvania - light bulb manufacturers who got cheap, low-profit incandescents banned so they could make more money."

The 100-watt standard incandescent bulb was banned this past January 1st, and 75-, 60- and 40-watt bulbs will be banned by January 1, 2014. Other incandescents will be banned by 2020, including the Halogen incandescents now touted by some ban-backers as a post-ban alternative to the bulbs Americans have used safely for a century. Promoted alternatives are expensive and potentially dangerous. CFLs, one widely-used alternative, contain poisonous mercury that requires exacting means of disposal and clean-up.

The National Center's simulated clean-up of a broken CFL is meant to show the arduous process involved in dealing with the government's new regulations on bulbs and the risks Americans may not know they are bringing into their homes.

"Breaking a compact fluorescent light bulb is a household crisis of the highest order," said David Almasi, executive director of the National Center for Public Policy Research and director of the National Center's "Occupy Occupy DC" project. "The EPA has a four-page printout on their web site for cleaning up a broken CFL that begins with immediately clearing a room of all sentient life for at least five minutes. And then it's a tedious process of making sure toxic mercury powder and vapor is removed. I'm thinking about 15 people -- including myself -- have read these instruction, meaning that the rest of America is at tremendous risk of mercury exposure in the years to come."

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Because ad campaigns, presidential cheerleading and lavish tax breaks failed to generate the public support necessary to keep the Chevy Volt assembly line running, the National Center for Public Policy Research is pitching in by employing a cut-rate, self-taught hypnotist to compel people to buy the Obama Administration's favorite electric car.

Klepto the Mediocre, a self-taught hypnotist, will appear in Washington, D.C.'s Freedom Plaza (13th and Pennsylvania Avenue NW) at noontime on Tuesday, March 6 as part of the National Center for Public Policy Research's "Occupy Occupy D.C." series of events.

"I'm usually detailed to the Transportation Security Administration, where I try to convince people that excessive pat-downs of the elderly is an effective way to fight terrorism," said Klepto. "Selling the Occupy hippies on electric cars should be like shooting fish in a barrel, but I expect problems. They don't seem to have steady incomes, and being green takes a lot of green if you know what I mean."

Convincing Americans to jump on the Obama Administration's electric car bandwagon has been a futile pursuit, made even more difficult after last week's announcement that General Motors is halting its assembly line for the Chevy Volt for five weeks and laying off approximately 1,300 employees.

The $40,000 electric car, which gets around 35 miles travel per charge before needing to rely on a back-up gasoline-based drive system, is plagued by low sales (less than 8,000 sold in 2011) and safety issues. The Obama Administration has sought to sweeten the deal on sales with a $7,500 subsidy that Obama’s 2013 budget seeks to raise to $10,000. Nonetheless, the assembly line shutdown was described by General Motors as a means of "maintain[ing] proper inventory."

"Klepto's got his work cut out for him," said David Almasi, executive director of the National Center for Public Policy Research and director of the National Center's "Occupy Occupy D.C." project. "Klepto will have his bag of tricks with him, but he will need some very strong magic to convince people that they need an electric car. For now, they are a toy for the rich. A Volt would be great for Leonardo DiCaprio to drive to a big movie premiere, but I can't really commute daily with one even though I live close to D.C. These aren't family cars, and you are subject to a lengthy recharge. Perhaps Klepto needs a time machine that can transport people to an era in which the technology has caught up with Obama's green pipe dreams."

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